Where Health Matters Grant Program

The Where Health Matters Grant Program is part of Health New England's overall Community Benefits program that looks to advance the health and well-being of vulnerable population groups living in Western and Central Massachusetts. Health New England will award four $50,000 grants to non-profit community organizations annually. This grant program will fund evidence-based community programs that address at least one of our priority areas as determined by our CHNA and one of the health issue areas or identified health priority areas (social determinants of health) as defined by the Attorney General Community Benefits Non-profit HMO Guidelines.

We are interested in non-profit community organizations that collaborate with other community partners for innovative delivery of programs that improve the health of people who live and work in our communities. 

Our focus areas for funding include:

  • Chronic diseases (including asthma, cardiovascular, chronic obstructive pulmonary, diabetes, and obesity)
  • Food insecurities and/or housing insecurities 
  • Infant, perinatal and maternal health 
  • Mental health and/or substance use disorder 

For additional insights into our priority funding areas, please refer to the most recent Community Health Needs for Health New England. For more detailed information on the social determinants of health, which have been adopted by the Attorney General Community Benefits Guidelines, refer to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health Determination of Need Health Priorities Guidelines. 

Where Health Matters Grant Program Application Process

All applicants are asked to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) and a Request for Proposal (RFP), in addition to all supporting documentation. Only complete submissions made online will be considered. Only one application per non-profit organization will be accepted in each funding year. Community organizations that have received a Health New England Mini Grant (in 2018) are also permitted to apply for the Where Health Matters Grant Program. In future years, nonprofit organizations will only be eligible for funding once from Health New England in a calendar year.


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Step 1)  Review and download our Grant Program RFP Guidelines and fill out all required supporting documentation, which includes: Budget Template, Evaluation Plan Template, Logic Model Template and Work Plan. These documents must be completed and submitted online as part of your Grant Application by September 17, 2018 by 4:00 p.m.
Step 2)  Submit your written question(s) about the Grant Application to communitygiving@hne.com by August 16, 2018 by 4:00 p.m.
Step 3)  Submit your Letter of Intent by August 20, 2018 by 4:00 p.m., through our online Letter of Intent form. 
Step 4)  A Grant Program Informational Session will be held on August 23, 2018 by 1:00 p.m. at Health New England. Please sign up here by August 20, 2018 if you plan to attend.
Step 5)  Submit your RFP Grant Application using our online form by September 17, 2018 by 4:00 p.m., and be sure to upload all completed supporting documents as part of your application.
Step 6)  RFP Grant Applications will be reviewed by Health New England Grant Program Review Teams, consisting of Health New England Community Benefits Advisory Committee members, public health experts and community partners.
Step 7)  Grantees will be informed in November 2018. Grantees will be required to present to the Health England Grant Program Committee and attend Grant Program Workshops in November 2018.
Step 8)  Funds will distributed to grantees in December 2018.
HNE